Tough times and tears
by InnocentSmile97
Summary: The Artful Dodger and Charley Bates have been friends for a long time, but could a few meaningless words change all that? Inspired by Kikane's Apology on Deviant!
1. A bad day

**Tough times and tears - Chapter 1 – A bad day**

The boys fell silent. The door slammed shut. The Artful Dodger threw himself down on the stool by the window with great force.

The boys had been chatting and laughing merrily before his presence but from the moment Jack Dawkins had entered the room, all laughter had ceased. They now shot fearful and curious glances at the angry looking boy slumped in the corner. Everyone wanted to know what had made the usually cheerful boy so unhappy but no-one had the guts to approach him. Or at least, almost everyone.

Charley Bates had knew the Dodger the best and the longest, so was in not afraid of his best friend, having seen him in many moods before. But none had ever looked quite so bad.

Charley got up from the table, where he had been playing cards with a group of other gang members and walked slowly across the room to his friend. Everyone's eyes followed him.

"Dodge… wassup?"

The Dodger turned away from Master Bates. He knew he only wanted to help but he didn't want someone forcing things out of him right now.

Charley sat down beside his friend and placed a grubby hand on Dodger's equally grubby royal blue jacket. Dodger shrugged it off.

"Please, Dodge…"

Master Dawkins whipped round and snapped;

"I don't need chu righ' now, Charley."

"I fink… I fink cha might." Replied Charley, tentatively.

"No. Like I jus' said, I don't need chu! So get lost!"

"I was only tryin' t'-"

"'Elp?" interrupted Dodger. "I know chu were jus' tryin' t' 'elp. An' I don't want it."

Charley stood up.

"I can see chu've 'ad a bad day, but that ain't no propa reason t' take it out on me."

"Take it out on chu." Said Dodger, also standing up to face Charley. "Take it out on chu. Oh, I ain't takin' it out on chu! You're the one who's comin' over 'ere an' actin' all carin'! Placin' your 'and on me shoulder an' bein' all innocent! Please, gimme a break from your silly lil' giggles an' annoying cheerfulness. I've 'ad a bad day an' I really don't want chu comin' an' rubbin' it in. My life is already miserable as it is, without 'avin' t' be constantly reminded of what I don't 'ave!"

"But we're friends…" said a shocked Charley as he took a few steps back.

"I don't have any friends, Charley. None of us do! No-one in this stinkin' room 'as any friends! So remember that, Charley. An' then fink twice 'bout comin' up t' me again."

Jack turned away from Charley again and was about to throw himself once more onto the stool when Charley spoke again, in a shaky voice.

"W-w-what's got inta you t'day?"

Dodger was so overcome with so much furious emotion that he couldn't help but retaliate to this comment, inflicting still more damage on his innocent victim.

"I'll tell you what's got inta me!" he shouted, starting back across the room until he was right up in Charley's hurt face. "It's chu! I told'ja I wan'ed chu outta my face! So do it! NOW!"

Then Dodger slapped his friend hard across the face.

It was the shock more than anything which had left Charley breathless. He brought his hand up to touch the part of his cheek which was now bright red and stinging. He looked around at the wide eyes blinking back at him. It was humiliating to be standing there after being hit and shouted at by his friend. He looked back up into Dodger's face, hoping, praying to hear some apology. But he swallowed back the tears when he realised it was not coming. He was trying so hard to stay dry-eyed but he knew that he couldn't.

He shook his head as he backed away from Dodger, who still had a fiery look in his eyes. A tear trickled down his face.


	2. Regret

**Tough times and tears – Chapter 2 – Regret**

Charley turned and fled from the room.

The Artful Dodger was becoming aware that the rest of the boys were starting to mutter amongst themselves.

He took a deep breathe. Letting his anger out had been good for him. It hadn't even been such a big thing in the first place. But Jack knew that one of his biggest faults was that he would let these little things bottle up inside of him until he really couldn't help it but explode.

He walked quietly over to the stool, where he sat down lightly. (This was a good move in terms of the stool needing to stay intact!) Realisation was dawning. The moments that had just past were played back inside Dodger's head. And he was becoming more and more ashamed the more he thought about it. He had let himself blow the situation out of proportion, damaging his best friend in the world's feelings.

Dawkins put his head in his hands. He was cross with himself for letting this happen. It was his entire fault. Some of the things he had said to Charley were unforgivable and he knew it.

_I don't need chu righ' now…_

_Gimme a break from your silly lil' giggles an' annoying cheerfulness…_

_I don't have any friends…_

_Fink twice 'bout comin' up t' me again…_

It was painful just to recall those words. He could even begin to imagine being on the receiving end of them. Oh, how he must've hurt his friend!

The Artful Dodger was becoming increasingly worried that he had lost the person he cared about most. Were the wounds too deep to heal?

Dodger looked towards the group of boys that Charley had been playing cards with before he had tried to comfort him. Their heads were bent together in a deep discussion. He knew full well that they were all talking about him.

He got up and walked over to their table and sat down in Charley's empty seat. He rested his chin in his hands. The conversation had immediately stopped when he sat down. The boys, whose names were Eddie, Bobby, James and Henry, looked cautiously towards him and exchanged glances, still unsure of the mental state in which Jack was in.

"What 'ave I done?" moaned Dodger.

The boys looked relieved that he was no longer shouting and felt safe enough to reply to this question (even though it had been somewhat rhetorical).

"Chu've made a righ' pigs ear of this I'm afraid." Said James, who had a habit of saying _exactly_ what he thought.

Henry, who was slightly more tactful, gave James a glare before saying;

"You an' Charley 'ave been friends since foreva. I'm sure chu can work this out some'ow…"

"Yeah, an' would chu still be my friend if I'd said that lot t' ya?"

Henry didn't seem to have an answer to that.

"Look," contributed Eddie "if you really regret what chu jus' said, then if ya speak t' 'im, 'e might forgive ya."

"Oh, I regret this alrigh'. I regret this more than anythin' else I've eva done, an' I've done a lot that I ought t' regret! I even slapped 'im for goodness sakes!"

The boys looked down at the ground.

"Well, ya be'er tell 'im that quick, else 'e'll've already made up 'is mind against ya!" said Bobby.

"That's if 'e 'asn't already. I would've." Muttered James. Thankfully none of the others heard him.

"Yeah, your righ' I need t' tell 'im soon!" Dodger stood up, as if to leave the room.

"You'll 'ave t' find 'im first!" piped up James, again.

"What 'ja mean?" frowned Henry.

"Well, 'e won't be somewhere obvious, where people might 'ear 'im." He reasoned.

"Yeah, but like everyone 'ere has already seen 'im cry." Objected Bobby.

"Yeah, yeah, OK, I'll 'ave t' look for 'im." Said Dodger, quickly ending a conversation which he could see being of no use to him.

And so he left the room, a much calmer Jack than the one who had entered.


	3. Raindrops

**Tough times and tears – Chapter 3 – Raindrops**

The bottom floor was empty. The store room was empty. The bedroom was empty. The Artful Dodger was starting to lose hope in finding Charley.

He climbed the stairs to the very top floor. Dodger wasn't quite sure why he had even bothered with coming up here as the only room up there was used for nothing. (Or so he thought. This was the room that played keeper to Fagin's little box of treasures…)

Dodger stopped when he was face to face with the brown door, its paint peeling off. He stood, trying to get his thoughts together, trying to think of what he should say first, but this was proving difficult as with every one of Charley's sobs from behind the door, Dodger felt his heart break a little more.

The longer he stood there, the less he was able to move. _'This is silly!'_ thought Dodger _'Just go and talk to him!'_

So he gathered all his possible courage and pressed his hand on the door. It opened with a _creeeeeeek_ to show a little huddle crouched in the corner.

"Go away." Mumbled the huddle.

Dodger ignored the command and closed the door behind himself. He had never had much regard for rules, especially the law and he wasn't going to start now.

"Go away!" repeated the boy with a little more force. But the effect was slightly ruined by him bursting into more tears.

Dodger stepped closer to Charley Bates.

"Charley… I… I've made a mistake…" began Dodger hesitantly "An' I want chu t' know… t' know that I'm sorry."

"Mistake?" said Charley, burying his face in his sleeve so that his words were slightly unclear. "Chu knew exac'ly what chu were sayin'."

"But I didn't mean it… honest! I'm sorry!"

"You can say sorry as many times as chu like, but it don't mean nothin'!" said Charley, coldly, still not looking at his former friend. "I don't need chu righ' now, Dodger!"

Dodger felt his own words sting him.

"Listen." Dodger got down to kneel on the floor, sitting back on his legs. "I'm not speakin' t' you as the moody boy that walked into that room and star'ed wrongly shoutin' at chu. I'm not talkin' t' you as the Artful Dodger. I'm talkin' t' you as Jack Dawkins. Your best friend. At the moment, I'm jus' me." And as if to prove the point, Dodger took off his beloved top hat and blue blazer. He threw the blazer aside and let the hat roll across the floor. It was like taking off a mask, removing a costume. He was now just Jack. And that was how he wanted to show Charley that he wasn't pretending any more and that he really was speaking from the heart.

"I jus' want us t' be friends again."

"You don't a-a-'ave any f-f-friends, rem-m-meber." Stammered Charley, turning his back on Jack.

Jack swallowed. This was tricky.

"You know me, Charley, it's when the lil' things build up that I burst…"

"I d-d-don't wanna e-e-ear chu, righ' now…" choked Charley. Jack ignored this.

"Everythin' was jus' goin' wrong. I couldn't find nothin' t' nick, no-one 'ad anythin' an' it wouldn't've been safe t' nick anythin' anyway… the tofts were all about. An' chu are the only thin' that eva goes righ'. An' I'm scared… scared I've ruined our f-f-friendship." Jack brushed a small tear from the corner of his eye.

Charley hardly dared to believe what he was hearing. He so desperately wanted to but could he trust him?

"Chu humilia'ed me." Charley said as he turned to face Jack, still hugging his knees.

"Humilia'e me back." Smiled Jack.

"Chu hit me."

"I… I'll do whateva it takes t' repay ya."

Jack leaned forwards to touch the side of his companion's dirty cheek, where he had slapped him. He rubbed it soothingly and Charley's breathing slowed down from the jumpy hiccup-y gasps.

"Do you forgive me?" whispered Jack, studying every inch of Charley's tear-stained face for a clue to the answer.

Charley pushed aside all doubt he had at the sound of Jack's unusually soft voice. These words weren't empty, he felt sure of it.

Bates leaned forwards and pulled his friend into a tight hug.

"I love you, mate." He said.

"I love you too." Answered Jack, full of relief. Thank goodness he had Charley back! He wouldn't have been able to cope without him.

Charley was still crying and his tears fell like raindrops onto Jack's shoulder, slowly soaking it. But Jack didn't care. All that mattered to him was his friend.

The sun slowly disappeared behind the silhouette of Victorian London. Charley and Jack watched it go down without moving from the room. They simply sat there, sometimes crying, sometimes laughing and sometimes talking about anything from their situation in life to the mouldy potato in the corner. But whatever they did they did it together, as friends.


End file.
